Do Hard Sh*t — Duke Kroll on E-Commerce, Sobriety, and Building with Brutal Honesty

Braving Business: Tales of Entrepreneurial Resilience and Courage in the Face of Adversity

Tal J Zlotnitsky

Entrepreneurship, How To, Business, Education

4.9 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 7 April 2025

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode of Braving Business, we sit down with Duke Kroll, a relentless e-commerce entrepreneur, agency founder, brand builder, Spartan racer, and father of six whose life has been anything but linear—and who wouldn’t have it any other way.

Duke’s journey started with hustling on eBay at 15 and took him through roles in ballroom dancing, photography, and Amazon agencies before he launched SellerSlice, his e-com agency built on grit, transparency, and an unapologetic commitment to getting results. But Duke’s not here to talk fluff.

He opens up about the real challenges behind his success—including battling addiction, losing massive clients overnight, facing a health crisis that nearly killed him, and how hitting rock bottom became the spark that changed everything. Now over 100 pounds lighter and sober, Duke’s brand isn’t just about business—it’s about rebuilding from the inside out.

In this episode, Duke shares:

How eBay flipping as a teen taught him the fundamentals of business
The hard decision to leave a high-paying job to start from scratch
What most founders get wrong about e-commerce (and how to fix it)
Why "extreme ownership" is his leadership non-negotiable
How he reinvented his life—physically, mentally, and professionally
Why his personal mantra is #DOHARDSHIT and what it means to him

Whether you’re running a startup, rethinking your leadership style, or trying to get out of your own damn way, Duke brings the kind of honesty and self-awareness that punches through the noise.

Key Takeaways:

Success doesn’t come from shortcuts—it comes from doing hard, uncomfortable things
“Rock bottom” can be your reset button if you’re willing to own your story
Building a brand and a business is about being brutally honest with yourself first

Connect with Duke Kroll:

Instagram: @dukekroll
Website: dukekroll.com
Agency: sellerslice.com
Podcast: The Vertical Edge

Contact Us: Visit www.bravingbusiness.com for more episodes, updates, and resources.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode of the Braving Business podcast is sponsored by, well, me.
0:04.8	I'm PJ Binwana. I've been in the domestic and international logistics space for over 30 years.
0:09.3	If you need any assistance with transportation or logistics, my team and I will jump at the chance to help.
0:14.8	Whether it be parcel shipments, e-commerce, pallets and freight, full truckload, international air and ocean, imports, exports,
0:21.4	warehousing, and distribution, or really anything under the logistics umbrella, we got you covered.
0:26.0	For more details, please go to shipwithpj.com. That's shipwithpj.com. Reach out to me there,
0:33.7	mention you found me on this podcast for a special surprise. And one last quick thing,
0:38.2	if you enjoy this episode, please stay on after the show to learn more about the Braving Business
0:42.7	podcast and other great episodes for you to discover. And now, let's get the show started. Well, hello there.
1:03.5	Hey there, Mr. You should be Tanner because you're just coming back from a cruise, but, um, I know, I'll pretend you look tan. I know you came back from a cruise. You do not i'll pretend you look tan i know you came back from a cruise
1:12.5	you do not look tan at all hey i look more than i was before i mean come on a rock and roll cruise so i
1:20.0	was like inside a lot watching bands amazing bands oh yeah yeah off from the 70s i know you were looking
1:26.3	forward to it this This was like a...
1:28.1	It was amazing.
1:29.5	It was a gift that my wife's ride or die, her best friend,
1:33.4	gifted us for her beating cancer.
1:36.0	So it was bands from the 70s and actually some from the 80s,
1:40.5	some from the 60s came on.
1:42.0	But like, Ello was on there.
1:45.3	Sheena Easton.
1:46.6	No way.
1:47.0	Oh, yeah.
	...

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